Corning meets Cleveland

This past weekend I met up with two of my friends who interned with me at Corning last summer-Jason and Jaclyn. I saw Jason in September when I made a trip out to New Jersey and NYC and actually just spent Easter with Jaclyn and two other Corning interns in Boston. Regardless, it was really good to see both of them, especially since they are just graduated and headed off on their own adventures. We packed a lot into the weekend-a nice dinner, comedy club, the Cleveland zoo, shopping, a brew pub, dancing, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame- but it was a lot of fun! We shared some laughs, caught up on our lives, and really just enjoyed each others company! Here are some pictures from the weekend:
Kissing a turtle at the zoo!

Jac and I ready to go out dancing!
Friendship.All three of us inside the "Rainforest"! A cute picture of Jac and Ime with a glass of strawberry wine out in Cleveland!

Being our usual selves on the way to the zoo

Cleveland really is a beautiful city. Jac and I ran to this park Saturday morning and had to go back to take pictures!
A good quote for two girls who want to change the world!

I have been lucky enough to meet so many great people on all of my life's adventures. Last summer in Corning I became friends with people that I hope remain in my life for many years to come. It is a priceless moment with friends, when you are reunited after much time away from each other, and it feels as though you haven't missed a second and with Jac and Jason it was as if we were still in Corning hanging out every single day. From these two friends I have been able to explore more of life on our adventures, to learn more about myself and the world, and have been lucky enough to learn from them to become a better person who is more engaged in the world around me. And when we are all together laughter is never in short supply :-)

I am a lucky girl to have such good friends. Even if they are scattered all over the world.

Life in the North

Two weekends ago I spent the weekend up north with my family. It is a long drive for me from Ohio now, but always worth it. It was a really fun weekend that included a little bit of hiking, ziplining, wall climbing, going to see the Mackinac Bridge, hanging on the boat, swimming, kayaking, and an incredibly good dinner. It is always so much fun when my family is all together and with the addition of the baby things seem to always be exciting! Here are some of my favorite pictures from the weekend:

Life is Good hanging out with Grandpa!

Krystal and Gavin on the frog!

My favorite picture I've ever taken of Gavin. Look at those BEAUTIFUL eyes!

Hanging out with his Grandma!

Krystal and I in front of the Mackinac Bridge...so pretty!
Ben and I at Lake Michigan

While we were up north I had the chance to go out kayaking late at night on Saturday. It was dark, the air was incredibly cool, and fog had slowly settled on the warm lake water. As I sat in the middle of the lake tilting my head back to stare at the millions of stars shining out above me I felt so small in a world filled with such grandeur. In complete silence it was as if I could see forever and hear forever and I enjoyed the moment of uninterrupted solitude. It's nice to strip away distractions isn't it? To get out and feel small again, to be quiet even for a few short minutes, and to just simply be while taking in the world around you? I hope you get a moment like that soon, it's so refreshing and re-energizing leaving you feeling like you can take on the world once again.

Goodbye Hello

This week I had to say goodbye to my good friend Amanda here in Celina. She was the very first friend I made when I moved here. She had me over for dinner a few times and I was always envious of her ability to cook up these awesome concoctions...plus she always offered desert! Then Monday nights became our meeting times and without fail we would watch the Bachelorette and hang out talking about our lives, our dreams, our passions, our futures-everything. And we woke up before the sun to go running. And there were bikerides, laughter shared over drinks as we ate good food and stared out at the beauty of the lake, and talk of all sorts of adventures. She patiently helped teach me to play tennis and I offered her running tips as I picked them up. She shared pieces of her life with me, stories of joy, of hurt, of overwhelming excitement. She was offering her wisdom.

I hate goodbyes. Amanda was my first new friend in my independent adult life. On my own in a new place, away from home, away from familiarity and I was lucky enough to make a friend who could teach me so much about life in a short 7 months.

Saying goodbye to Amanda wasn't easy but it made me realize that who we become friends with is not merely a coincidence. We connect with people and make the concious decision to invest in them. To open up and share pieces of ourselves with them. Life, I believe, brings you people when you need them, for as longs as you need them, in order to get you through a certain point, to learn a new lesson, and to create irreplacable memories. Amanda came to Celina to start her life over. I came to start mine for the very first time. Together we embarked on a journey. A journey to our better selves. Our richer and more experienced selves. Our happier and more fulfilled selves. Our more confident more caring selves. Our more adventurous more daring selves. And most importantly,our pure selves.

If I am willing, I can learn something from every person that crosses my path on my lifes journey. If I am willing to invest myself with a genuine soul to soaking up their wisdom my life will become greater. If I am willing, I will be able to one day impact other's lives in the same way mine is impacted by people all around me every day.

There is so much to learn from people everywhere. I love to meet new people and to learn more and more about people that I already know because everyone's life is a testament to something. A testament to love, or hope, or sadness. A testament to wreckless abandon, or freedom, or strength. Everyone is a testament to life and to the realization that the only thing that outlives our own lives is the impact we make on anothers. Relationships are what lasts.

Call someone you haven't heard from in awhile. Send a card. Hug a friend. Smile at a stranger. Lend a few nickels to the person counting change in front of you at the checkout. Leave an extra tip for your waitress even if your service wasn't the greatest.

Investing in people must be one of the greatest joys of life.

And with that, it is goodbye to my friend Amanda who invested in me with an unhindered spirit. Thanks for listening and for sharing your life with me.I look forward to the adventure that will be our next encounter (in the Kentucky mountains I hope!)

Goodbye always leads to another Hello.